us watercraft thefts and recoveries: 2014 (public

Date: 8/20/2015 Regarding: US Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries: 2014 (Public Dissemination) Prepared By: Christine Moss, Strategic Analyst

Executive Summary

There were a total of 5,181 Watercraft thefts in 2014, a 6% decrease in watercraft thefts from 2013. The watercraft most likely to be stolen in 2014 was a “Yamaha - Jet Ski” (453 thefts), closely followed up by the “Bombardier Corp. Jet Ski” (406 thefts). Of the 5,181 watercrafts stolen in 2014, 2,140, or 41% were recovered. The highest number of watercraft thefts in 2014 took place in Florida (24%). The Top 3 watercraft theft counties were Miami-Dade, Florida (255 thefts), Broward, Florida (106 thefts), and Lee, Florida (84 thefts). The Top 3 watercraft theft cities in 2014 were all located in Florida: Miami (177 thefts), Tampa (63 thefts), and Fort Lauderdale (61 thefts). Of the 5,181, stolen watercrafts in 2014, 21% were recovered within 9 days of being stolen. The holidays with the most watercraft thefts in 2014 was Labor Day and Memorial Day, each with 29 thefts.

In the furtherance of watercraft theft awareness and prevention, NICB brochure “Boat Theft: Leave Thieves in Your Wake” suggests that boat owners should use a common sense approach to protecting their watercrafts. The suggested prevention methods tell boat owners to: “dock your craft in well-lit areas; secure your boat to the dock with a locked steel cable; remove expensive equipment from your boat when not in use; lock the boat’s cabin, doors, and windows when not in use; remove registration or title papers in the craft; disable the boat when not in use by shutting off fuel lines and removing the battery or distributor cap; install an alarm system and a kill switch in the ignition system; use a trailer hitch lock after parking a boat on its trailer; park your trailer in a locked garage, secured boat storage facility, or a well-lit, fenced area; and ensure your marine insurance policy includes your equipment, boat, and trailer. Also, to be prepared for the possibility of a watercraft theft, NICB encourages boat owners to take photos of their boat, and to be sure that their boat and equipment are marked with a Hull Identification number (HIN), a serial number that uniquely identifies every boat and will ultimately help law enforcement with recovery efforts.

Introduction

Throughout the year 2014, there were a total of 5,181 watercraft thefts within the United States (US). Of these thefts, 2,140, or 41%, were recovered by May 31, 2015 while 3,041, or 59%, remain at large. This ForeCASTSM Report analyzes the 5,181 watercraft thefts and corresponding recoveries1 with information reported to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) National Crime Information Center (NCIC). There are 3 sections to this report consisting of an analysis of the watercrafts, a geographical analysis, and a temporal analysis. “Section 1: The Watercrafts” analyzes the 2014 watercraft thefts and recoveries by manufacturer, boat type2, manufacturer and boat type combined, and boat type and propulsion type combined. “Section 2: Geographic Analysis” analyzes the 2014 watercraft thefts and corresponding recoveries by state, by boat type and state, then by county and city. “Section 3: Temporal Analysis” analyzes the 2014 watercraft thefts and recoveries by month, holiday, and the number of days between the theft date and recovery date.

There will be a number of graphical representations throughout this report, including tables, charts, and maps. With the exception of the maps, ‘Red’ relates to theft information, while ‘Blue’ relates to recovery information. Additionally, all percentages, including those already mentioned, are rounded to the nearest whole number.

1 A corresponding recovery is defined as recovery information that relates to its respective theft. 2 The terms “watercraft” and “boat” will be used interchangeably throughout this report.

US Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries: 2014 (Public Dissemination) 8/20/2015 of 17

Section 1: The Watercrafts

This section will provide an analysis of the 2014 watercraft thefts and recoveries in 5 ways: [1] by the Top 10 manufacturers; [2] the 13 boat types recognized by the NCIC; [3] the Top 10 manufacturers and boat type combinations; [4] and the boat type and propulsion type combinations.

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries by Manufacturer

There were 561 different manufacturers3 identified in the 2014 watercraft theft and recovery data. The table below lists all manufacturers with 10 or more thefts along with recovery information in descending order by number of thefts. The Top 10 stolen manufacturers are shown in ‘Bold’ font, and are surrounded by a black box. Totaling 1,745 thefts, the Top 10 manufacturers represent 34% of all watercraft thefts in 2014. The manufacturer with the largest number of stolen watercrafts was “Yamaha” with 547 thefts. Of the Top 10 manufacturers, “Sea Ray Boats Inc.” had the highest recovery rate of 58%, while “Old Town Canoe Co.” had the lowest recovery rate of 23%.

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries by Manufacturer

Manufacturer Thefts Recoveries Recovery

Rate% Manufacturer Thefts Recoveries

Recovery Rate%

Yamaha Motor Corp. 547 204 37% Alumaweld Boats 17 6 35%

Bombardier Corp. 509 200 39% Valco Aluminum Boats 17 4 24%

Kawasaki Motors Mfg. 138 48 35% AMF Crestliner 17 10 59%

Alumacraft Boat Co. 116 34 29% Landau Boat Co. 17 4 24%

Bass Tracker Corp. 100 37 37% Crownline Boats, Inc. 16 8 50%

Carl A. Lowe Ind., Inc. 91 28 31% Bentz Craft 16 3 19%

Starcraft Co. 65 22 34% Carolina Boat Co. 15 11 73%

Sea Ray Boats, Inc. 63 34 54% Pro Craft, Inc. 15 9 60%

Old Town Canoe Co. 61 14 23% Grumman Boats 15 7 47%

Sea Nymph Mfg. 55 26 47% Mastercraft Boat Co. 15 8 53%

Pelican Intl. 52 11 21% Malibu Boats 14 8 57%

Sears Roebuck & Co. (Marine Div.) 51 17 33% Gregor Boat Co. 14 9 64%

Tracker Seacraft of Florida 48 20 42% Alweld Commercial Boats 14 7 50%

Wellcraft Marine 45 23 51% Midwest Seat Mfg. Co., Inc. 14 5 36%

Marba Glas 44 11 25% Mirro Marine 14 3 21%

Polaris Ind. LP 42 21 50% Glasspar Boat Div. 14 4 29%

Boston Whaler, Inc. 42 20 48% Watercraft America, Inc. 13 2 15%

Smoker-Craft 42 21 50% Triton Ind., Inc. 13 9 69%

Carolina Skiff, LLC 37 23 62% Eldo Craft Boat Co. 13 3 23%

Coast Catamaran Corp. 33 11 33% Key West Boats, Inc. 13 5 38%

Zodiac of North America 32 10 31% Harris Inds. 12 3 25%

Bayliner Marine Corp. 30 19 63% Ouachita Marine & Ind. Corp. 12 3 25%

Lund American, Inc. 30 16 53% VIP Marine Ind. 12 5 42%

Monark Boat Co. 29 9 31% Coleman Co. 12 4 33%

Fisher Marine, Inc. 29 15 52% Sea King 12 1 8%

Glastron Boat Co. 28 15 54% Grady-White Boats, Inc. 12 5 42%

Forrest Wood Mfg. Co. 27 14 52% Mako Marine, Inc. 12 6 50%

Polar Kraft Mfg. Co. 27 7 26% Nitro Marine 12 8 67%

Ocean Kayak 25 5 20% Avon Rubber Co. 12 7 58%

Bayliner Marine, Inc. 25 19 76% Correct Craft, Inc. 11 7 64%

Duracraft Boats, Inc. 25 9 36% Grumman Allied Ind., Inc. 11 3 27%

Skeeter Products, Inc. 21 10 48% Sea Fox Boat Co., Inc. 10 7 70%

American Honda Motor Co., Inc. 20 8 40% Century Boat Co. 10 5 50%

Wilderness Systems 20 2 10% Baja Boat Co. 10 4 40%

Godfrey Conveyor Co. 19 11 58% Rinker Boat Co., Inc. 10 6 60%

Achilles KCI Corp. 19 11 58% Seaswirl Boats 10 5 50%

West Marine Products 19 8 42%

Sylvan Ind., Inc. 19 7 37%

Hydra-Sports, Inc. 18 4 22%

3 There was 1 record where the manufacturer’s identification was not able to be confirmed using the NCIC Boat Codes Manual or the US Coast Guard’s

Manufacturer’s Identification website (http://www.uscgboating.org/) and are therefore not included in the number of different manufacturers.

http://www.uscgboating.org/


Manufacturer

Thefts

Recoveries

Recovery

Rate%

Chaparral Boats, Inc. 18 7 39%

Gheen Mfg. Co. 18 4 22%

Florida Homemade Boats 17 3 18%

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries by Boat Type

There are 13 boat types recognized by the NCIC (refer to Appendix 1) and 3,816 of the 2014 theft records identified 1 of those types as the type of boat stolen. The remaining 1,365 provided a boat code not recognized by NCIC (50) or did not provide a code at all. Of the 3,816 records with NCIC-recognized boat codes, 25%, or 1,318, were identified as “All Other”. Excluding the “All Other” category, the Top 5 stolen boat types comprised 47% (2,436) of all 2014 watercraft thefts. The most frequently stolen watercraft was the “Jet -Ski,” with 1,121 thefts. Of the Top 5 boat types, “Sailboat” had the highest recovery rate of 53%, while “Jet Ski” had 39%. . An analysis of the number of thefts of each boat type per state is located on page 8 of this report.

The list below provides the number of thefts and recoveries per boat type in 2014 in descending order by number of thefts, excluding the “All Other” category. The Top 5 stolen boat types are ranked and numbered, and a sample photo4 for each boat type is provided.

1. Jet Ski Thefts: 1121 Recoveries: 435 Recovery Rate: 39%

2. Runabout Thefts: 755 Recoveries: 376 Recovery Rate: 50%

3. Utility Thefts: 325 Recoveries: 145 Recovery Rate: 45%

4 Pictures are not of actual stolen watercrafts; all images were found through Google Images to provide one general example of what each type of boat may look like.


4. Cruiser Thefts: 186 Recoveries: 93 Recovery Rate: 50%

5. Sailboat Thefts: 49 Recoveries: 26 Recovery Rate: 53%

Commercial Thefts: 19 Recoveries: 13 Recovery Rate: 68%

Houseboat Thefts: 16 Recoveries: 5 Recovery Rate: 31%


Airboat Thefts: 14 Recoveries: 2 Recovery Rate: 14%

Hovercraft Thefts: 5 Recoveries: 3 Recovery Rate: 60%

Yacht Thefts: 4 Recoveries: 3 Recovery Rate: 75%

Hydroplane Thefts: 3 Recoveries: 0 Recovery Rate: 0


* Corresponding recoveries from 01/01/2014 through 05/31/2015

Hydrofoil Thefts: 1 Recoveries: 0 Recovery Rate: 0

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries by Manufacturer & Boat Type Combined

The table below ranks the Top 10 stolen manufacturer and boat type combinations along with recovery information, listed in descending order by number of thefts. Only records that identified a manufacturer and a NCIC-recognized boat type were included in the analysis. Totaling 1,263 thefts, the Top 10 manufacturer and boat type combinations comprised 24% of all watercraft thefts in 2014. The most frequently stolen combination in the Top 10 was the “Yamaha – Jet Ski”, with a total of 453 thefts. The combination with the highest recovery rate, in the Top 10, was “Polaris – Jet Ski” at 47% recovered. The lowest recovery rate was for the “Pelican Intl – Other”, at a recovery rate of 15%.

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries for the Top 10 Manufacturer & Boat Type Combinations

Manufacturer Boat Type Thefts Recoveries Recovery Rate %

1. Yamaha Jet Ski 453 165 36%

2. Bombardier Corp. Jet Ski 406 163 40%

3. Kawasaki Motors Mfg. Jet Ski 124 46 37%

4. Old Town Canoe Co. Other 52 13 25%

5. Carl A. Lowe Ind. Other 45 12 27%

6. Alumacraft Boat Co Other 42 13 31%

7. Pelican Intl. Other 39 6 15%

8. Marba Glas Other 38 8 21%

9. Polaris Jet Ski 34 16 47%

10. Bass Tracker Corp. Other 30 7 23%

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries by Boat Type & Propulsion Type Combined

The table on the following page ranks the Top 10 stolen boat type and propulsion type combinations, including the number of recoveries and recovery rate for each, listed in descending order by number of thefts. Only records that identified a boat type and a propulsion type recognized by the NCIC were included in the analysis. Totaling 2,630 thefts, the Top 10 boat type and propulsion type combinations represent 51% of all 2014 watercraft thefts. Of the Top 10 boat type/propulsion type combinations, “Jet - Ski – Inboard” had the highest number of thefts with 680. The Top 10 combination with the highest recovery rate of 59% was “Cruiser – Inboard”, while the combination with the lowest recovery rate was “Utility – Outboard” at 26%.

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries for the Top 10 Boat Type & Propulsion Type Combinations


* Corresponding recoveries from 01/01/2014 through 05/31/2015

Boat Type Propulsion

Type Thefts Recoveries*

Recovery Rate %

1. Jet Ski Inboard 680 240 35%

2. Other Outboard 509 219 46%

3. Runabout Outboard 479 235 46%

4. Other Manual 352 65 40%

5. Utility Outboard 195 93 26%

6. Runabout Inboard 162 88 45%

7. Cruiser Inboard 90 53 59%

8. Cruiser Outboard 71 32 45%

9. Other Inboard 59 29 49%

10. Jet Ski Outboard 33 13 39%

Section 2: Geographic Analysis

The Geographic Analysis Section analyzes the 2014 watercraft thefts and corresponding recoveries in 3 parts: [1] the 2014 watercraft thefts and corresponding recoveries by theft state; [2] the 2014 watercraft thefts per state by boat type; [3] the 2014 watercraft thefts and corresponding recoveries for the Top 10 theft counties; [4] the 2014 watercraft theft and corresponding recoveries for the Top 10 theft cities.

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Corresponding Recoveries by Theft State

All of the 5,181 watercraft thefts in 2014 identified the state where the theft occurred and almost every state reported at least one theft, with the exception of Hawaii and the District of Columbia (DC). The following table lists the thefts and corresponding recoveries5 for each state in descending order by number of thefts. The Top 10 theft states are identified with ‘Bold’ font, ranked, and surrounded by a black box in the below table. Totaling 3,297 thefts, the Top 10 theft states comprised 64% of all 2014 watercraft thefts. Consistent with 2013, the state with the highest number of thefts was Florida with 1,290, representing 25% of all watercraft thefts in 2014. This is more than twice as many thefts as the next highest theft state, making Florida a watercraft theft hotspot. Of the Top 10 theft states, Washington had the highest recovery rate of 53%. The state with the lowest recovery rate of the top 10 was Tennessee, with 32% of stolen watercrafts being recovered.

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Corresponding Recoveries by Theft State

State Thefts Recoveries Recovery

Rate % State Thefts Recoveries

Recovery Rate %

FL 1290 469 36% VA 53 22 42%

CA 507 262 52% KY 50 23 46%

TX 386 156 40% KS 41 9 22%

WA 201 106 53% NV 37 17 46%

NC 169 63 37% NJ 36 10 28%

GA 163 68 42% IA 33 8 24%

TN 159 51 32% CT 32 18 56%

SC 146 50 34% NB 28 13 46%

AR 139 49 35% NH 25 10 40%

AL 137 56 41% WV 22 5 23%

LA 132 39 30% AK 21 10 48%

MI 126 33 26% CO 20 7 35%

OH 110 40 36% ME 19 4 21%

MO 102 41 40% RI 15 4 27%

MN 100 39 39% UT 14 5 36%

5The recovery information for this section corresponds to the thefts per state in order to provide an accurate recovery rate. If a watercraft was recovered

in a different state than where it was stolen, it was counted in the recovery information for the theft state, as opposed to the recovery information for the recovery state.


OR 97 36 37% MA 14 2 14%

PA 93 16 17% DE 13 2 15%

AZ 90 40 44% ID 12 7 58%

OK 90 33 37% MT 10 2 20%

IN 79 25 32% NM 9 2 22%

NY 78 31 40% SD 6 4 67%

MS 71 24 34% VT 5 1 20%

WI 71 25 35% ND 4 2 50%

MD 63 22 35% WY 3 1 33%

IL 60 19 32% VA 53 22 42%

The map shown below is a geographic representation of the volume of Watercraft thefts by state in 2014.


The map shown below is a geographic representation of the volume of Watercraft recoveries by state in from

2014 through 05/31/2015.


2013 Watercraft Thefts and Corresponding Recoveries by Boat Type per Theft State

The following table lists the number of boat type thefts for each state, excluding Hawaii and DC. They are listed in alphabetical order and separated by boat type. Florida had the highest number of reported thefts for Jet Skis (411), Cruisers (39), Airboats (8), Sailboats (12) and Commercial boats (11), Washington reported the highest number of thefts of Runabouts (110), Cruisers (59) and Sailboats (19). Florida, Delaware, Missouri, Maryland, and Texas each reported one Hovercraft theft, while Kansas, Mississippi, and Pennsylvania each reported one Hydroplane theft. Lastly, California reported one hydrofoil theft.

2014 Watercraft Thefts per State by Boat Type

Jet – Ski Runabout Utility

State Count State Count State Count State Count State Count State Count

FL 411 KY 9 WA 110 MI 7 TX 41 MD 4

CA 130 VA 9 CA 98 NY 6 FL 31 NB 4

TX 99 KS 8 FL 92 NB 5 NC 23 NY 4

AZ 33 WI 7 TX 63 NJ 5 LA 22 PA 4

WA 32 CO 6 MN 30 NV 5 GA 17 VA 4

NC 30 PA 6 NC 29 ID 4 SC 17 MN 3

MI 29 WV 5 LA 26 KY 4 WI 16 AL 2


OK 29 LA 4 AR 22 MO 4 CA 15 DE 2

TN 29 ID 3 AZ 21 NH 4 MS 15 KS 2

NY 23 ME 3 MS 21 OK 4 MO 14 NV 2

OH 21 SD 3 OR 21 KS 3 AR 10 WV 2

SC 21 AK 2 SC 19 PA 3 OH 10 CO 1

GA 20 MT 2 TN 19 RI 3 IA 8 CT 1

AR 16 ND 2 GA 18 VA 3 TN 8 ID 1

AL 15 NM 2 AK 16 DE 2 KY 6 ME 1

MO 15 UT 2 IL 15 UT 2 OK 6 MT 1

IN 13 CT 1 AL 14 CO 1 AZ 5 NH 1

NB 12 DE 1 WI 13 ME 1 MI 5 NJ 1

NJ 12 IA 1 IN 12 ND 1 OR 5 NM 1

NV 12 NH 1 CT 9 OH 1 IN 4 UT 1

MS 11 WY 1 IA 9 VT 1 MA 4 WA 1

MD 10 MD 9

MN 10

OR 10

Other Cruiser Sailboat State Count State Count State Count State Count State Count State Count

FL 241 NY 20 FL 39 KY 3 FL 12 MN 2

CA 73 NH 16 NC 11 LA 3 CA 6 WI 2

MI 73 KS 15 GA 8 NY 3 TX 6 IL 1

TX 65 CT 12 MI 8 OH 2 MD 4 KY 1

SC 56 ME 11 AL 7 SC 2 MI 3 MS 1

AR 54 CO 10 TX 7 AK 1 NC 3 OR 1

OH 47 MS 10 IL 5 CO 1 WA 3 SC 1

TN 46 IA 9 MD 5 IA 1 AZ 2 VA 1

MO 44 WV 9 OR 5 MN 1

PA 44 MA 7 NV 4 MO 1

NC 42 NJ 7 OK 4 NJ 1

IL 39 RI 6 TN 4 NM 1

MN 37 AZ 5 VA 4 RI 1

WA 34 NB 5 WA 4 SD 1

LA 33 ID 4

OR 33 NV 4

GA 30 MT 3

AL 29 AK 2

MD 25 DE 2

KY 24 NM 2

OK 23 VT 2

VA 21 ND 1

WI 21 SD 1

IN 20 WY 1

Commercial Airboat Hovercraft Houseboat Hydroplane Yacht

State Count State Count State Count State Count State Count State Count

FL 11 FL 8 DE 1 CA 3 KS 1 CA 1

AL 1 CA 1 FL 1 AR 2 MS 1 FL 1

CA 1 LA 1 MD 1 FL 2 PA 1 OR 1

CT 1 MS 1 MO 1 SC 2

GA 1 OR 1 TX 1

IN 1 UT 1

NC 1 VA 1

NH 1

TX 1

Hydrofoil

State Count

CA 1


2014 Watercraft Thefts and Corresponding Recoveries by Theft County

Of the 5,181 theft records, there were 1,218 unique counties identified in the 2014 Watercraft theft and recovery data, two records did not contain theft county information. The theft county with the highest number of stolen watercrafts was Miami-Dada, Florida with 255 thefts. Of the Top 10 theft counties, Orange, Florida had the highest recovery rate of 73%, while Broward, Florida had the lowest at 11% recovered. Of note, 8 of the Top 10 theft counties were located in Florida, with the remaining being located in California (2).

Watercraft Thefts by top 10 Counties

County State Thefts Recoveries Recovery

Rate % 1. Miami-Dade FL 255 97 38 %

2. Broward FL 106 12 11 %

3. Lee FL 84 25 29 %

4. Palm Beach FL 79 28 35 %

5. Los Angeles CA 79 30 38 %

6. Hillsborough FL 64 23 36 %

7. Orange FL 63 46 73 %

8.Monroe FL 60 32 53 %

9. Sacramento CA 52 30 58 %

10. Polk FL 48 22 46 %

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Corresponding Recoveries by Theft City

All of the 5,181 theft records identified the city in which the theft occurred, 924 of the 2,140 recovery records reported the city where the watercraft was recovered. There were 1,784 unique theft cities identified in the 2014 watercraft theft and recovery data. Totaling 630 thefts, the Top 10 theft cities account for 12% of all watercraft thefts in 2014. The theft city with the highest number of stolen watercrafts was Miami, Florida with 177 thefts. Of the Top 10 theft cities, Sacramento, California had the highest recovery rate of 51%, while Fort Lauderdale, Florida had the lowest at 13% recovered. Of note, 9 of the Top 10 theft cities were located in Florida, with the remaining being located in California (1).

2014 Thefts and Corresponding Recoveries by Theft City

City State Thefts Recoveries Recovery

Rate % 1. MIAMI FL 177 75 42%

2. TAMPA FL 63 21 33%

3. FORT LAUDERDALE FL 61 8 13%

4. FORT MYERS FL 58 19 33%

5. ORLANDO FL 55 23 42%

6. MARATHON FL 54 20 37%

7. SACRAMENTO CA 49 25 51%

8. DELAND FL 40 11 28%

9. WINTER HAVEN FL 38 14 37%

10. WEST PALM BEACH FL 35 14 40%

The map shown below is a geographic representation of the volume of Watercraft thefts by city in 2014.


The map shown below is a geographic representation of the volume of Watercraft recoveries by city from 2014

through 05/31/2015.


Section 3: Temporal Analysis

On average, there were approximately 14 watercraft thefts per day, 100 per week, or 432 per month in 2014. However, watercraft thefts are not distributed evenly over time and the following Temporal Analyses will aim to show when to be the most prepared for potential thefts by analyzing the 2014 watercraft thefts and recoveries in 3 ways: [1] by theft month and recovery month; [2] by holiday [3] by the average number of days between the theft date and recovery date for each boat type recognized by the NCIC.

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries by Theft Month


The graph to the right displays the 2014 watercraft thefts per theft month. As previously mentioned, watercraft thefts are not evenly distributed over the year and this graph clearly highlights that. Watercraft theft is a seasonal crime with more thefts occurring in spring and summer, as the months of April through September all exceeded the monthly average of 432. July had the highest number of thefts with 667, while February had the fewest thefts with 223.

The graph to the right displays the 2014 watercraft recoveries per month. Only recoveries made in 2014 were included. Of the watercraft thefts in 2014, there was an average of 178 recoveries per month. As with the thefts, recoveries appear to be seasonal with May through October having a higher than average number of recoveries. July had the highest number of recoveries at 254, and February had the fewest number of recoveries at 115.

2014 Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries by Holiday

The graph on the following page displays the number of watercraft thefts by holidays in 2014. The holidays with the most watercraft thefts in 2014 was tied between Labor Day and Memorial Day, both with 29 thefts each, and the holiday with the least number of thefts was New Year’s Eve with 4 thefts.

0100200300400500600700

285223

345412

548628 667

539 514431

291 298

2014 Watercraft Thefts by Month

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

129 115 130166 182

223254

229 227 221

120144

2014 Watercraft Recoveries by Month


2014 Watercraft Thefts and Recoveries: Analysis of the Number of Days between Theft Date and Recovery Date

The following table displays the Top 10 number of days between a watercraft’s theft and recovery date in descending order by number of recovered thefts (shown below in bold Blue font). All 1,109 recoveries from 1/01/2014 through 5/31/2015 were included in this analysis. Of the 1,109 recovered thefts, 257 were recovered either on the same day as the theft or by the end of the following day, representing 24% of all recoveries or 12% on the same day or 12% by the end of the following day. Of the Top 10 days to recovery, 21% of all thefts were recovered within 9 days of the theft date.

Top 10 Number of Days Between Theft Date and Recovery Date

Days to Recovery Recovered Thefts % of All Thefts % of All Recoveries

0 (Same Day) 257 5% 12%

1 257 5% 12%

2 155 3% 7%

3 113 2% 5%

4 71 1% 3%

5 70 1% 3%

7 65 1% 3%

8 43 1% 2%

6 41 1% 2%

9 37 1% 2%

Totals 1109 21% 52%

NCIC

6

6

9

29

19

29

13

6

16

17

4

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35

NEW YEARS DAY

VALENTINE'S DAY

PRESIDENT'S DAY

MEMORIAL DAY

FOURTH OF JULY

LABOR DAY

HALLOWEEN

THANKSGIVING

CHRISTMAS EVE

CHRISTMAS DAY

NEW YEARS EVE

2014 Thefts by Holidays


Methodology

Data parameters were defined as all watercrafts stolen in the US between January 1, 2014 and December 31, 2014 that were reported to the NCIC. Corresponding recovery information was collected from the NCIC and included only watercrafts that were stolen in 2014 but were recovered between January 1, 2014 and May 31, 2015. Watercrafts stolen from the US but recovered outside of the US are included, as well. Steps taken to clean the data included:

1. Removing records not classified as watercrafts by the NCIC (the NCIC classifies watercrafts by assigning a file number beginning with the letter ‘B’)

2. Removing all records that did not identify a HIN 3. Removing duplicate records 4. Removing records with a theft location outside of the US 5. Removing all records used for testing and training purposes.

NCIC can be considered one of the most reliable and comprehensive sources of watercraft theft and recovery data, as it is a centralized database where local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies throughout the US can report crime information. Despite its reliability, many validity issues still arise through inaccurate or incomplete information within each individual record, which may result in limitations in the data. Of all 5,181 thefts in 2014, 14% did not provide or provided an unverifiable manufacturer’s code, 26% did not supply or gave incomplete information on the boat type, and 35% did not provide or gave incomplete information on propulsion type. To offer all watercraft theft stakeholders with the most valuable information, any records with miscellaneous, misidentified, or unidentified information were not included in any Top 10, within this report; however, all relevant calculations were evaluated based on the premise of 5,181 total thefts.

Appendix 1: NCIC Boat Type Definitions

Airboat Undefined

Commercial Ferry, oyster boat, motor barge, towboat, tug, clam dredge, coaster, riverboat, smack

boat, etc.

Cruiser A boat with an inboard motor that is at least 25 feet long but no longer than 50 feet

Houseboat Undefined

Hovercraft Undefined

Hydrofoil Undefined

Hydroplane Undefined

Jet Ski Aqua bike

Runabout Launch, motorboat, outrider, speedboat, etc.

Sailboat Cat, catamaran, cutter, bark, ketch, lateen, lugger, pinnace, schooner, sloop, yawl, etc.

Utility Fisherman, sedan, etc.

Yacht A boat with an inboard motor that is more than 50 feet in length and is used mainly for

pleasure or recreation

All Other Canoe, dinghy, dory, johnboat, kayak, lifeboat, paddleboat, rowboat, scull, skiff, etc.

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